Brand new McDonald’s opens its doors

Outside view of Madisonville’s new McDonald’s franchise, which is set to open this week.

Posted
Tuesday, August 1, 2017 8:30 pm

By Campbell Atkins
Sports writer

The wait for the restoration of McDonald’s in Madisonville is over.

The start of the new month will also signify the grand opening for the fast food franchise with state-of-the-art upgrades and unique amenities throughout the entire facility.

“This will be right on par with some of the best McDonald’s stores in the country,” said Steve McKinney, owner and operator who has possessed the land since 2010. “It will feature digital order boards inside, touch screen games, touch screen tables and flavor drink stations.”

According to McKinney, the process has been in the works for about five years now. The project officially began on April 1 of this year.

Like many McDonald’s locations, the restaurant’s drive-through will be open 24 hours, seven days a week.

“The process of rebuilding it has been monumental, said McKinney. “It took a lot of people coming together and a lot of trades working on top of each other, but at the end of the day it’s going to get done and be beautiful.”

One of the qualities that make this particular McDonald’s unique is the addition of a dog park behind the restaurant. Customers traveling with pets down the highway looking for a pit stop and a bite to eat in Madisonville will no longer be required to run a strategic and painful operation of putting their dog on a leash, walking them around a small, grassy area to do their business before or after worrying about their meal.

“We’re hoping to have the dog park ready by the time we open,” said McKinney. “They can utilize the dog park and enjoy their lunch or dinner while their pet can stretch their legs.”

The store was to officially open on Tuesday night to fireworks. The doors opened right afterward, and the first 100 customers 18 and older received free McDonald’s for an entire year. The parking lot will open the previous night around 8 p.m. where the wait will begin.

While the drive through will always be open, they will also keep the lobby open throughout the entire opening night. There will be a red-carpet entrance, which includes a photo booth, and 99 cent Big Macs will be sold from 11 p.m. until 4 a.m.

The deals continue into the rest of the inaugural week. They will offer 69 cent sausage biscuits and 79 cent cheeseburgers throughout the day on Wednesday and free coffee o Thursday as well as happy meals for just $1.99.

The real party comes on Saturday night. The official grand opening celebration will last from 4 to 8 p.m. and feature camel rides, bounce houses, prizes, games, a photo booth, a balloon twister and a chance to meet Ronald McDonald and see his red shoe car. Ronald will also be performing a magic show.

“It’s going to be very hectic,” said McKinney. But you definitely want to give people an incentive to come out. Madisonville will be very proud.”